Neurodegenerative diseases are chronic and progressive diseases of the nervous system.Modern studies have shown that intestinal flora disorders,mitochondrial dysfunction and lipid metabolism abnormalities are closely related to the occurrence and development of neurodegenerative diseases,but the treatment methods are limited.Traditional Chinese medicine believes that spleen is the"the foundation of nurture"and the"the source of Qi and blood biochemistry",Qi deficiency leads to insufficient Qi,blood and body fluid metaplasia,brain dysplasia,leading to the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases.This paper discusses the mechanism of treating neurodegenerative diseases by spleen from the perspective of"intestinal flora,mitochondria and lipids",and concludes that intestinal flora balance is the material basis of spleen function,mitochondrial homeostasis is an important mechanism of the function of"spleen governing transportation and transformation",and abnormal lipid metabolism is an important manifestation of spleen deficiency and phlegm stasis.Intestinal flora,mitochondria and lipid metabolism may be the potential biological basis for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases by spleen in traditional Chinese medicine.In order to provide ideas for the clinical research and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Objective:To revise the quality standards for pharmaceutical excipients such as medicinal brown sugar.Methods:This article combines the production and application of medicinal brown sugar,and refers to the requirements of GB/T35885-2018 brown sugar,the fourth general rules of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020 edition,and other relevant requirements,and conducts research on its characteristics,identification,inspection,and assay.Results:A quality standard for medicinal brown sugar was established,and 10 batches of samples were tested according to the proposed quality standard.Conclusion:The establishment of this standard will provide quality assurance for the application of brown sugar in the pharmaceutical field.

ObjectiveTo establish preliminary diagnostic criteria for spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome in ischemic stroke patients and provide a basis for standardized diagnosis and treatment of ischemic stroke. MethodsRelevant literature on the diagnostic criteria for spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome in ischemic stroke patients was retrieved， and data were mined and extracted to form an item pool. Based on the formation of the item pool， this study used the Delphi method to initiate two rounds of questionnaire surveys with selected experts to complete the initial screening of items and the discrimination of symptom importance. A prospective clinical investigation method was adopted to collect clinical information from patients， and statistical analysis methods and data mining techniques were comprehensively used to determine their primary and secondary symptoms. Based on the clear main and secondary symptoms identified， combined with expert group discussions， the study established preliminary diagnostic criteria for spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome in ischemic stroke patients. ResultsA total of 25 relevant syndrome differentiation standards were included. After splitting， standardizing， and screening the items， the study established a pool of 48 items. The first round of questionnaire survey consulted 30 experts， with both the positive coefficient of experts and the effectiveness rate of the questionnaire reaching 100%. The Kendall's coefficient of concordance was 0.359. According to the item screening criteria， 26 items were retained in this round of questionnaire survey. A total of 176 cases were collected through clinical information investigation， including 94 cases with spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome and 82 cases without spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome. The statistical results were as follows： ① Descriptive statistics： The main symptoms with a frequency of ≥ 30% included mental fatigue and lack of strength， weakness of the lower back and knees， etc. The secondary symptoms with a frequency of ≥ 10% and ≤ 30% were lassitude and disinclination to talk， shortness of breath， etc. ② Binary logistic regression analysis： The main symptoms with an odds ratio （OR） value of ≥ 3 were mental fatigue and lack of strength， weakness of the lower back and knees， etc. The secondary symptoms with an OR value of ≥ 1 and ≤ 3 were lassitude and disinclination to talk， shortness of breath， etc. Artificial neural network： The main symptoms with a weight value（W_ij）of ≥ 0.5 and < 1 were mental fatigue and lack of strength， lassitude and disinclination to talk， etc. The secondary symptoms with W_ij of ≥ 0.3 and < 0.5 were shortness of breath， flaccid limbs， etc. In the second round of questionnaire survey， a total of 37 experts were consulted， with both the positive coefficient of experts and the effectiveness rate of the questionnaire reaching 100%. The Kendall's coefficient of concordance was 0.237. According to the criteria to determine primary and secondary symptoms based on the Delphi method， the main symptoms included in this round of the questionnaire were mental fatigue and lack of strength， lassitude and disinclination to talk， etc.， and the secondary symptoms were shortness of breath， dizziness， etc. ConclusionThe main symptoms of spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome in ischemic stroke patients are mental fatigue and lack of strength， weakness of the lower back and knees， loose stool， pale and edematous tongue texture possibly with tooth marks， and deep and thready pulse or weak pulse. The secondary symptoms include shortness of breath， dizziness， tinnitus and deafness， decreased appetite or postprandial abdominal distension， pale complexion， frequent micturition at night， dull tongue texture， and white and slippery tongue coating. The preliminarily established diagnostic criteria for spleen and kidney deficiency syndrome in ischemic stroke patients can provide a standardized and objective basis， thereby better guiding clinical diagnosis and treatment of ischemic stroke.

Objective:To revise the quality standards for pharmaceutical excipients such as medicinal brown sugar.Methods:This article combines the production and application of medicinal brown sugar,and refers to the requirements of GB/T35885-2018 brown sugar,the fourth general rules of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020 edition,and other relevant requirements,and conducts research on its characteristics,identification,inspection,and assay.Results:A quality standard for medicinal brown sugar was established,and 10 batches of samples were tested according to the proposed quality standard.Conclusion:The establishment of this standard will provide quality assurance for the application of brown sugar in the pharmaceutical field.

Objective:To compare the clinical efficacy of percutaneous endoscopic interlaminar discectomy (PEID) and posterior small incision microdiscectomy (MD) in the treatment of recurrent lumbar disc herniation.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the data of 132 patients who underwent revision surgery for recurrent lumbar disc herniation at the same segment at Qilu Hospital of Shandong University between July 2012 and August 2022. The patients were treated with either PEID or MD. The PEID group consisted of 90 patients, including 51 males and 39 females, with a mean age of 42.7±11.3 years and a mean body mass index (BMI) of 23.7±3.4 kg/m 2. The surgical segments were L 4-5 in 38 cases and L 5S 1 in 52 cases. The primary surgeries included open discectomy in 7 cases, laminectomy with bone graft in 3 cases, MD in 35 cases, and PEID in 45 cases. The MD group consisted of 42 patients, including 30 males and 12 females, with a mean age of 41.2±12.6 years and a mean BMI of 24.3±4.7 kg/m 2. The surgical segments were L 4-5 in 19 cases and L 5S 1 in 23 cases. The primary surgeries included open discectomy in 2 cases, laminectomy with bone graft in 1 case, MD in 17 cases, and PEID in 22 cases. The visual analogue scale (VAS) scores for low back pain and leg pain, Oswestry disability index (ODI), immediate postoperative VAS score for surgical wound pain, intraoperative blood loss, surgical wound length, operation duration, length of hospital stay, and various complications before and after surgery were compared between the PEID and MD groups. Results:The operation duration in the PEID group was 81.7±11.3 min, that in the MD group was 85.2±9.5 min, but the difference was not statistically significant ( t=1.740, P=0.081). The intraoperative blood loss in the PEID group was 4.4±2.9 ml, the surgical wound length was 0.9±0.2 cm, and the length of hospital stay was 3.1±1.3 d, all significantly less than those in the MD group (26.6±10.3 ml, 3.4±1.1 cm, and 8.7±1.6 d, respectively), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). Both groups were followed up, with a mean follow-up duration of 24.4±5.5 months in the PEID group and 24.5±4.9 months in the MD group, and there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups ( t=0.101, P=0.920). Both the PEID and MD groups showed significant improvements in postoperative VAS scores for leg pain, VAS scores for low back pain, and ODI compared with preoperative values ( P<0.05). Additionally, the VAS score for surgical wound pain on the first postoperative day in the PEID group was 1.2±0.4, which was lower than that in the MD group (2.9±0.6), with a statistically significant difference ( t=19.261, P<0.001). The incidence rates of muscle weakness, postoperative sensory abnormalities, and dural tears in the PEID group were 12%(11/90), 27%(24/90), and 6%(5/90), respectively, significantly lower than those in the MD group [31%(13/42), 40%(17/42), and 33%(14/42), respectively], with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). However, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in the incidence rates of recurrence, residual nucleus pulposus, spinal cord-like hypertension syndrome, subcutaneous wound infection, or intervertebral space infection ( P>0.05). No patients in either group developed retroperitoneal hematoma postoperatively. Conclusion:For patients with recurrent lumbar disc herniation after primary posterior surgery, PEID demonstrates equally excellent clinical efficacy compared with MD, with smaller surgical trauma and a lower incidence of complications.

Objective:To compare the clinical efficacy of percutaneous endoscopic interlaminar discectomy (PEID) and posterior small incision microdiscectomy (MD) in the treatment of recurrent lumbar disc herniation.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the data of 132 patients who underwent revision surgery for recurrent lumbar disc herniation at the same segment at Qilu Hospital of Shandong University between July 2012 and August 2022. The patients were treated with either PEID or MD. The PEID group consisted of 90 patients, including 51 males and 39 females, with a mean age of 42.7±11.3 years and a mean body mass index (BMI) of 23.7±3.4 kg/m 2. The surgical segments were L 4-5 in 38 cases and L 5S 1 in 52 cases. The primary surgeries included open discectomy in 7 cases, laminectomy with bone graft in 3 cases, MD in 35 cases, and PEID in 45 cases. The MD group consisted of 42 patients, including 30 males and 12 females, with a mean age of 41.2±12.6 years and a mean BMI of 24.3±4.7 kg/m 2. The surgical segments were L 4-5 in 19 cases and L 5S 1 in 23 cases. The primary surgeries included open discectomy in 2 cases, laminectomy with bone graft in 1 case, MD in 17 cases, and PEID in 22 cases. The visual analogue scale (VAS) scores for low back pain and leg pain, Oswestry disability index (ODI), immediate postoperative VAS score for surgical wound pain, intraoperative blood loss, surgical wound length, operation duration, length of hospital stay, and various complications before and after surgery were compared between the PEID and MD groups. Results:The operation duration in the PEID group was 81.7±11.3 min, that in the MD group was 85.2±9.5 min, but the difference was not statistically significant ( t=1.740, P=0.081). The intraoperative blood loss in the PEID group was 4.4±2.9 ml, the surgical wound length was 0.9±0.2 cm, and the length of hospital stay was 3.1±1.3 d, all significantly less than those in the MD group (26.6±10.3 ml, 3.4±1.1 cm, and 8.7±1.6 d, respectively), with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). Both groups were followed up, with a mean follow-up duration of 24.4±5.5 months in the PEID group and 24.5±4.9 months in the MD group, and there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups ( t=0.101, P=0.920). Both the PEID and MD groups showed significant improvements in postoperative VAS scores for leg pain, VAS scores for low back pain, and ODI compared with preoperative values ( P<0.05). Additionally, the VAS score for surgical wound pain on the first postoperative day in the PEID group was 1.2±0.4, which was lower than that in the MD group (2.9±0.6), with a statistically significant difference ( t=19.261, P<0.001). The incidence rates of muscle weakness, postoperative sensory abnormalities, and dural tears in the PEID group were 12%(11/90), 27%(24/90), and 6%(5/90), respectively, significantly lower than those in the MD group [31%(13/42), 40%(17/42), and 33%(14/42), respectively], with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). However, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in the incidence rates of recurrence, residual nucleus pulposus, spinal cord-like hypertension syndrome, subcutaneous wound infection, or intervertebral space infection ( P>0.05). No patients in either group developed retroperitoneal hematoma postoperatively. Conclusion:For patients with recurrent lumbar disc herniation after primary posterior surgery, PEID demonstrates equally excellent clinical efficacy compared with MD, with smaller surgical trauma and a lower incidence of complications.

Neurodegenerative diseases are chronic and progressive diseases of the nervous system.Modern studies have shown that intestinal flora disorders,mitochondrial dysfunction and lipid metabolism abnormalities are closely related to the occurrence and development of neurodegenerative diseases,but the treatment methods are limited.Traditional Chinese medicine believes that spleen is the"the foundation of nurture"and the"the source of Qi and blood biochemistry",Qi deficiency leads to insufficient Qi,blood and body fluid metaplasia,brain dysplasia,leading to the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases.This paper discusses the mechanism of treating neurodegenerative diseases by spleen from the perspective of"intestinal flora,mitochondria and lipids",and concludes that intestinal flora balance is the material basis of spleen function,mitochondrial homeostasis is an important mechanism of the function of"spleen governing transportation and transformation",and abnormal lipid metabolism is an important manifestation of spleen deficiency and phlegm stasis.Intestinal flora,mitochondria and lipid metabolism may be the potential biological basis for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases by spleen in traditional Chinese medicine.In order to provide ideas for the clinical research and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

ObjectiveTo explore the common syndrome elements of cerebral ischemic stroke （CIS） complicated with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome （OSAHS）， reveal the characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） syndromes of the disease， clarify the syndrome differentiation and syndrome types， provide evidence for clinical syndrome differentiation， and provide reference for establishing the TCM syndrome type standards of CIS complicated with OSAHS. MethodThe clinical information form of CIS complicated with OSAHS formulated by the research group was used for syndrome survey， and the four-examination information of 300 patients with CIS complicated with OSAHS was collected. The four-examination information of patients was analyzed by latent structure method and comprehensive cluster analysis， and the common syndrome elements of CIS complicated with OSAHS were extracted by combining the TCM basic theory and clinical experience. On this basis， the characteristics of TCM syndromes and the syndrome types in line with reality were summarized. ResultThe top five syndrome elements in patients with CIS and OSAHS are sleep snoring， open mouth breathing， physical obesity， night awakening and dizziness. The top five tongue and pulse manifestations are enlarged tongue， slippery pulse， slippery coating， thick and white coating and purple tongue. The disease locations are the lung， spleen， stomach， kidney， liver and brain. The nature of disease includes deficiency， depression， blood stasis， phlegm， dampness and fire. The clinical syndrome types include the syndrome of stagnation of phlegm and dampness， syndrome of phlegm-dampness blocking the mind， syndrome of spleen deficiency with dampness， syndrome of Yin deficiency leading to fire hyperactivity， syndrome of Qi depression blocking collaterals， syndrome of liver depression and blood stasis， syndrome of Qi deficiency with dampness， and syndrome of Yang deficiency induced water retention. ConclusionIn addition to the common phlegm-， dampness- and blood stasis-related syndromes in patients with CIS and OSAHS， there are also depression- and deficiency-related syndromes. The main etiology and pathogenesis is the disturbance of Qi movement. In clinical practice， attention should be paid to the specific situation of individual patients to differentiate between deficiency and excess， and the treatment should be performed by the method of soothing and reinforcing， or unblocking and clearing， or both.

The core of diagnosing and treating diseases in traditional Chinese medicine lies in syndrome differentiation. The eight principles of syndrome differentiation serve as guidance for syndrome differentiation. As one of the eight principles of syndrome differentiation， the differentiation of deficiency and excess is the basic and critical method. Ischemic stroke is currently the leading cause harming the health of Chinese residents. Although the hypotheses about the cause of ischemic stroke have evolved from external wind to the later internal wind and to the modern theory of toxin damaging the brain collaterals， they all believe that this disease is rooted in internal deficiency and external excess. According to available studies， although stroke is characterized by complex pathogenesis and rapid progression of syndromes， the key cause evolution has a regularity， that is， from excess to deficiency. This article analyzes the historical evolution of the etiology， pathogenesis， and syndrome differentiation schemes of stroke. There are diverse schemes for the syndrome differentiation of stroke， which make it difficult to choose in clinical practice. In view of this problem， this paper puts forward a new approach of staging sequential treatment of ischemic stroke based on the differentiation of deficiency and excess according to the evolution law of the key cause of stroke. Furthermore， we conducted a randomized controlled study on 100 patients with ischemic stroke to evaluate this new approach. The results showed that the staging sequential treatment of ischemic stroke based on the differentiation of deficiency and excess demonstrated definite clinical efficacy. In addition， this article reviews the previous research results of our team and the research achievements of other teams to preliminarily explore the relationship between stroke syndromes and biomarkers， aiming to provide an objective basis for unveiling the pathogenesis of stroke. In summary， according to the key cause evolution （from excess to deficiency）， the treatment of ischemic stroke by stages based on differentiation of deficiency and excess can facilitate the rapid intervention and improve the clinical efficacy on ischemic stroke.

Chaihu Guizhi Decoction is an excellent prescription of ZHANG Zhongjing;however,nowadays the application of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction is primarily derived from the text.The xiang thinking is the source of traditional Chinese medicine thinking.Understanding Chaihu Guizhi Decoction from the xiang thinking,it is easy to perceive the true meaning of ZHANG Zhongjing,and grasp the location of the disease and the patient's overall qi,so as to make better use of this formula.This article discusses the understanding of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction from five perspectives:firstly,it gives an overview of the xiang thinking,pointing out the source and essential value of the xiang thinking;secondly,it analyses the disease position and the patient's qi of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction under the perspective of the xiang thinking as a whole;thirdly,it discusses the disease position and the patient's qi of the original text of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction from the xiang thinking;fourthly,it discusses how to understand the principle of formula formation and the main and minor parts of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction by xiang thinking;finally,it analyses the primary medicines in Chaihu Guizhi Decoction by using xiang thinking based on the records of Shennong Bencao Jing.Based on these five points,we hope to reveal the traditional Chinese medicine thinking behind Chaihu Guizhi Decoction,and provide new ideas for the clinical application of Chaihu Guizhi Decoction.